Business Dinner
by smoakqueen12
Summary: Oliver and Felicity confront their feelings for each other following her business dinner with Ray. Episode tag for 3.07.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everyone! Last week's episode of _Arrow_ was inspiring, and this is what came out of it. Hopefully it will help tide you over until the big crossover event. Obviously, I don't own any of the characters and no infringement is intended.**

**Also, it's been a long time since I've written anything for public consumption, so any feedback (good or bad) would be greatly appreciated! I hope you enjoy!**

Felicity paused at the head of the stairs leading into the Foundry, listening for any sounds below. She had received a text from Roy informing her the team was at Digg and Lyla's place, but she didn't want to take any chances. The text had been an invitation to join them, but Felicity had known that was not a good idea. She couldn't handle facing Oliver after what she'd overheard on the comms earlier, it just hurt too much. And the fact that the invitation hadn't come from Diggle himself made her think that maybe he wasn't very happy about the way they'd left things in her office that afternoon. _Roy must be the only one who doesn't know I wouldn't exactly be welcome tonight_, Felicity mused to herself as she slowly descended.

She hadn't planned on coming back to the Foundry after the way she'd run out earlier. As soon as she'd known that Oliver was safe, she'd hightailed it back to Queen Consolidated…or rather Palmer Technologies now. _That was going to take some getting used to_, Felicity thought. She hadn't been able to stand the idea of facing Oliver after his little speech about how he knew what it was to want someone, but not be able to be with them. It had broken her heart, and she needed some time alone to process.

Returning to work had seemed like a good idea, until that little scene with Ray. She had known he was attracted to her, and she had to admit she found him attractive too, but the kiss had caught her off guard. She had told Oliver she couldn't wait for him forever and that she wanted more from life, but she wasn't sure she was ready to take a step that big, especially with Ray. She wasn't comfortable with the idea of dating her boss. She'd heard enough (unfortunately unfounded) rumors to that effect when Oliver was CEO of QC, and she didn't want to go down that road again. She refused to be reduced to the cliché of the blond who'd slept her way to the top.

Felicity stumbled a bit on the last step because she was still foolishly running around in her couture dress and heels. "I really should have changed at some point this evening," Felicity mumbled to herself. "All I need is to damage a dress that costs more than I'll make in the next month. That would really be the icing on the cake for this craptastic day. First I have to listen to Oliver explain that we can't be together, again, and then Ray kisses me before pulling a complete 180 and practically running out of my office. Apparently nobody wants…" Felicity's voice trailed off as she took in the mess on the Foundry's floor. If she didn't know any better, she would have thought there had been some sort of fight, but surely one of the guys would have told her if that had been the case. Right? She knew she'd been busy that evening, but she hadn't been that out of touch.

Inspecting the mess more closely, Felicity noticed that all the items on the floor were ones that usually rested together on the same table. It was almost as though someone had swept everything off the table in a fit of anger, or maybe passion. She wondered what exactly had happened here after she'd cleared out. Whatever it was, it couldn't have been too bad if the team was all together sharing dinner at Digg's place. Well, the team minus her.

Whatever the cause, Felicity decided she would ignore the mess. She'd only returned to the Foundry to make sure her equipment was properly shut down. She'd run out so quickly before she hadn't had a chance to take care of her babies. Whoever had made the mess would just have to deal with it on their own.

Felicity sat in front of her computers, sparing only a glance for the fern perched on the table nearby. She made a mental note to move the plant to a spot where it wouldn't be visible while she sat at her work table. She hardly needed another reminder of what might have been, if only Oliver had been willing to take a chance.

Felicity's mind had started to drift to her comfortable couch and the pint of mint chocolate chip in her freezer when a steely voice she instantly recognized questioned, "What are you doing here?"

Felicity rotated slowly in her chair to find Oliver standing in the midst of the mess she noted earlier. She felt something tighten in her chest as she took in his tense jaw and blank expression. He was clearly trying to appear relaxed, and failing rather spectacularly. One hand was clenched in a fist, while the thumb on his other hand absently rubbed his fingers. This was a nervous tic Felicity had noticed some time ago, and its appearance rarely boded well for the conversation at hand.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Felicity blurted. "I thought you were supposed to be having dinner at John's place with Lyla and Roy. I just came by to shut my system down and I didn't think you'd be back so early. Not that I was avoiding you or anything because there's certainly no reason for me to do that I just meant seeing you here is unexpected and…"

"Felicity," Oliver curtly interrupted her rambling. "I live here, remember?" His eyes flicked quickly to something behind Felicity's back, and she just knew he was looking at the damn fern. _I really have to move that thing _she thought for the second time that night.

"Roy and I did have dinner with Digg and Lyla," Oliver continued quietly, "but we didn't want to stay too late. Sara needs her sleep, and so do her parents."

"And what about you?" Felicity asked gently. "Don't you need to get some sleep too?"

Oliver glanced away again, this time turning away completely to break eye contact. "I have some things I need to take care of," he replied, before bending to the mess on the floor.

"Yeah...I was wondering what happened here," Felicity said, rising from her chair to help with the mess.

"It was nothing," Oliver replied shortly. She noticed him clench his fist again before forcing it to relax so he could return to straightening up. "You don't have to worry about it, I can take care of it myself. You should head home. It's late."

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say it looks like Roy had one of his mirakuru rages. Except I know that can't be it since I've tested his blood myself. Twice, in fact. And there wasn't a trace of the drug in his system. Nothing…nada…zip.." Felicity slowly trailed off when Oliver made no response beyond a slight grimace. Something she said had obviously touched a nerve. "Was it Roy?" she asked tentatively. "Because I'm sure he's clean."

Oliver sighed. "No, Felicity, It wasn't Roy."

"Was there a fight?" she asked, trying to figure out why Oliver seemed so upset.

"No there wasn't a fight," he responded.

"Then what…"

Oliver cut her off. "Just let it go, ok? Seriously, you can head home and I'll take care of this. I'm sure you have somewhere else you'd rather be." There was a bitterness in his voice that puzzled Felicity.

"Oliver, what is going on with you tonight?" she asked, gently placing her hand on his shoulder. He visibly flinched at her touch, and Felicity quickly drew back her hand. She knew that things had been awkward lately, ever since there conversation in the hospital to be exact, but she hadn't realize it had gotten this bad. It hurt her tremendously to think that she could no longer offer comfort to her friend.

"Is this about Carrie?" she asked quietly. "Are you worried handing her over to A.R.G.U.S. was a bad idea?"

Oliver closed his eyes for a moment, as though he was gathering strength, or reining in his temper. "Look," he began, "this has nothing to do with anyone but me. I'd really appreciate it if you could just let it go and give me some time to myself."

Felicity took a step back and gathered her keys and phone. "Got it. No need to ask me twice. I mean you kind of did. Ask me twice I mean. Or maybe it was three times. It depends on whether or not we're counting only the times you explicitly asked me to go or…this is not helping. I'm going now."

She was at the bottom of the stairs when she heard Oliver mutter, "Give my regards to Ray." She froze for a moment before whirling around with eyes narrowed.

"What is that supposed to mean?" she asked in a quiet voice.

He met her eyes briefly before glancing away. "Nothing."

It didn't seem possible, but her eyes narrowed further. "That wasn't nothing. I know nothing and that definitely wasn't nothing."

Despite his mood and the storm brewing in Felicity's eyes, the corner of Oliver's mouth kicked up in a grin. "Did you just say you 'know nothing'?"

"That's not what I meant and you know it, Oliver!" Felicity exclaimed. "You deliberately made a comment about Ray to provoke me." Glancing again at the mess on the floor Felicity asked incredulously, "Is that what this is about? You threw some tantrum because I was at a business dinner with Ray and wasn't sitting here at your beck and call?"

Oliver winced and replied, "It wasn't because of your date it was…"

Now it was Felicity's turn to cut him off. "It was a business dinner, not a date. BUSINESS DINNER," she repeated slowly.

"Funny, none of my business dinners ended up with me making out in my office," Oliver shot back before he could think better of it.

Felicity looked stunned. It took her a moment before she could speak. "First of all, I highly doubt that. In fact, I'm positive that isn't true. Given the way you jumped in to bed with Isabel Rochev, I'm pretty confident your business dinners ended with a lot more than making out."

"Not in my office," Oliver mumbled under his breath.

"Second of all," Felicity said striding over to Oliver and poking him hard in the chest, "how in the hell you do you know what happened in my office tonight? Are you spying on me now?"

Oliver huffed with exasperation. "Of course I'm not spying on you."

"Then how do you know what happened between Ray and I?" she asked.

Oliver took a small step back, needing to put some distance between himself and the angry blond. "I might have been coming to see you in your office and accidently walked in on you kissing Ray."

Felicity's anger dissipated quickly in the wake of his quiet words. She knew exactly what it was like to see the person you cared about in someone else's arms. If he felt for her even a fraction of what she felt for him, it would have torn his heart out. "Look, I'm sorry Oliver. I obviously never meant for you to see something like that."

The bitter tone was back in his voice when he replied, "Yeah, it was pretty clear you weren't thinking about me at all. You told me you were going to move on, I just didn't realize how quickly you'd manage to do it." For the second time that night he turned his back on her. When he spoke his next words, Felicity could tell just from the tone of his voice that he'd plastered one of those fake 'Oliver Queen' smiles on his face. "Guess what we had wasn't that important anyway."

"No," Felicity replied firmly. "You do not get to do that. You do not get to diminish what I felt for you, what I still feel for you, and push all the blame onto me. You know how I feel and..."

"Do I?" He interrupted, spinning around to face her once more. "By my reckoning, I'm the only one who's said how they feel. And I'd say that little episode in your office this evening made it pretty clear where your interests lie."

"That's how you want this to go?" Felicity asked angrily. "Fine. I didn't want to say this but I refuse to let you lie to yourself and pretend that I'm the reason we're not together. I love you. Is that plain enough for you?" Tears began to roll down her face and Oliver instinctively reached out a hand. She took a step back before he could touch her. "No. I refuse to get pulled in again just to have you change your mind and make some godly proclamation that we can't be together. Goddamn it, Oliver! I told you. I can't keep doing this. You can't keep me on some shelf waiting for someday, counting on maybes. Yes, I love you. I love you so much it hurts. My heart aches every time I see you because I know you love me too. And I know things could be great between us, but you won't let that happen. YOU are the reason we're not together. Not me, and certainly not Ray. You can keep lying to yourself if you want, but don't expect me not to call you on it."

She was breathing heavily, clearly waiting for some sort of response. Oliver's gaze was on the floor, on the mess he'd made earlier in his fit of rage. _What a perfect metaphor for the mess I've made of my life,_ Oliver thought cynically.

Disgusted with his silence, Felicity turned toward the stairs, and the exit, one more time. "That's what I thought, Oliver."

"Wait." He knew he should just let her go, let her walk out. But he couldn't. He was worried that if he didn't say something now she'd walk out and never come back. It killed him to think of her with Ray, with anyone other than himself, but he didn't think he'd survive if she walked away completely. The thought of his life without Felicity in it wasn't something he could bear.

His voice was quiet, but she could hear the entreaty in the single word. She stopped, but she refused to turn around. "I'm just trying to protect you," he explained quietly. He could see her shaking her head, though she still hadn't turned around. "I want you to be happy."

She looked back at him with disgust written all over her face. "Do you think I'm an idiot?" she asked quietly. Her question confused Oliver, and he couldn't answer quickly enough to satisfy her. "Seriously, do you think I'm some sort of moron?"

"You know I don't," he replied, still not sure what she was asking.

"Then what makes you think I'm too stupid to think for myself? Too stupid to analyze a situation and decide what risks I'm willing to take?" Once again she was advancing on him, invading his space. "What makes you think I'm such an idiot that I can't figure out what I need to make me happy?" Oliver just stared, at a complete loss for words.

"Just because you have your head stuck so far up your ass you can't see what's right in front of you, doesn't mean I do too." Without waiting for a response she grabbed his shirt with both hands and slammed her mouth down on his. Before Oliver could react, before he could even process what was happening, she pulled away. Her hands were still fisted in his shirt, however, and he covered them with his own to hold her in place.

"What the hell was that?" he asked quietly.

"That," she replied, dragging her gaze up to meet his, "was my way of saying I'm done."

The roar that suddenly filled Oliver's ears almost drown out Felicity's next words. "Are you listening Oliver? I said I'm done."

Lifeless now, Oliver's hands fell to his sides. He'd known she wouldn't wait forever, but somehow he'd thought he had more time. He'd thought that maybe, with time, he'd be able to…but obviously he'd been wrong. "You're done," he repeated quietly.

"Yes," she replied firmly. "I'm done. Done waiting for you to make a move. Done waiting for you to realize I'm in danger whether we're together or not. Done waiting for you to decide you're willing to take a risk on what we have, on what we could have. And most of all, I'm done taking no for an answer."

"I…I don't understand," he replied.

"Yes, I've noticed you can be incredibly dense about these things," she quipped. Oliver didn't understand her change in mood, the sudden levity. It was as though the decision she'd made had lifted a weight off her shoulders, while at the same time crushing his heart.

She shook him gently before trying to explain. "I understand, Oliver, I really do. Somehow you think I'll be happier without you, safer. You think you need to be alone, that you don't deserve happiness. You think there's some sort of darkness in you that destroys everything good you touch." He gave the barest nod, acknowledging all she'd said and silently agreeing. "I understand," she continued, "but I don't agree."

"Felicity," he began.

"No, Oliver," she interrupted. "I told you I'm done. No more excuses, no more 'I can't.' I'm done walking away. I will keep repeating it until you get it through that thick skull of yours. I love you, Oliver." His eyes closed as her words washed over him. "Do you hear me? I love you."

She released his shirt to place her hands on either side of his face, so reminiscent of the way he'd held her when they'd kissed at the hospital. "Look at me. Look at me, Oliver," she repeated. Slowly, unwillingly, he opened his eyes and looked into hers. "I love you, and I see you. All of you. Even the dark places inside you've tried to keep hidden. I know you did things during the five years you were lost. Things you think make you unlovable, but that's not true."

He opened his mouth to argue, but she cut him off before he could. "Obviously I don't know exactly what you did, but I don't need to. If you want to tell me sometime, you know I'll listen. Listen, and not judge. Even if you never choose to share what happened to you during those five years, it won't make a difference. I don't need to know who you were because I know who you are. And I love who you are."

Oliver slowly leaned his head down until his forehead rested on Felicity's. "I don't deserve you," he whispered.

"I don't agree, but it doesn't matter whether you think you deserve me or not," she responded emphatically. "You think that I deserve to be happy, don't you?" she asked.

"Of course I do, Felicity," he responded, "but…"

"And we've already agreed you don't think I'm an idiot, right?" she questioned again.

"Yes, but…" Again she cut him off.

"Have I ever lied to you? Think hard, Oliver. Can you think of a single instance where I've lied to you, or shied away from telling you the truth when you didn't want to hear it?"

"No," he replied with a smile playing around his lips. "You've never lied to me, or been afraid to speak your mind."

"Then trust me when I tell you the only thing that will make me happy, the only person I want in my life, is you. For once, Oliver, don't push me away because of what YOU think I need. Listen to what I'm telling you I need, what I want. Stop claiming you're protecting me. I'm a big girl and I can take care of myself."

Oliver slowly brought his hand up to cup her cheek. "It was never just about keeping you safe, you know. It turns out I have a hard time concentrating in the field when I know you're waiting for me." A frown formed on his face as he recalled their disastrous date, as he thought about what could have happened because he had been too distracted with thoughts of her to realize some thug was planting a tracker on him.

"Well," Felicity replied, "if Digg is to be believed, you have a hard time concentrating in the field even when I'm not waiting for you." Oliver's glance conveyed his confusion so Felicity hastened to explain. "John may have stopped by my office today. And he may have insinuated that my business dinner with Ray was messing with your head a bit."

Oliver frowned. "Don't be mad," Felicity insisted quickly, "you know he's just looking out for you, for us."

He sighed. "I'm not mad, I'm just wondering if your little talk was before or after the lecture I got from Digg."

Felicity smiled. "The man gets around." She slowly moved her hands around to the back of his neck and linked her fingers together. "So, are we going to have some happy news to share with him tomorrow, or am I going to have to keep trying to convince you that this is happening?" she asked quietly.

Their gazes met, and she could see the desire in eyes, the desire for her, for the life he could build with her. But she could also see the doubt. The doubt that they could make it work, the doubt that it wouldn't come crashing down around him like every other relationship he'd ever been in. She knew if she couldn't convince him now, there was no way they would ever make it work.

"Do you trust me, Oliver?" she asked quietly.

"You know I do," he replied reverently. "I trust you with my life."

"Then trust me with you heart. Trust me to keep it safe," she whispered.

He sighed. He'd been fighting for so long, fighting everything and everyone. He didn't have the energy to fight anymore. The thought of finally giving in, of letting go with Felicity, was too tempting for him to refuse. "Ok."

"Ok?" She asked excitedly.

He looked deeply in her eyes as a genuine smile spread across his face. "Ok," he repeated.

"And you're not going to suddenly change your mind and push me away again, right?" she asked, looking into his eyes.

"Right," he confirmed.

Felicity squealed before jumping into Oliver's arms. He laughed, holding her close, absorbing her happiness. A warmth spread through his chest, unlike anything he'd felt before. He didn't know, couldn't know, what the future would bring, but he was determined they'd face it together.

"Do me favor though," Oliver whispered into her hair.

"Anything, you know that," she responded instantly.

"No more business dinners, ok?"

She laughed, before pressing a hard kiss to his lips. "I promise, no more business dinners."


	2. Chapter 2

**I swear this was originally intended to be a one shot, but I appreciated all the reviews, favorites, and follows so much, I thought I'd write a little something to say Thank You! Unlike the first chapter I didn't have this one all planned out before I started typing, so it didn't exactly go in the direction I was expecting.**

**This chapter picks up right where the last one left off. Once again, any and all feedback is greatly appreciated!**

Oliver loosened his hold and allowed Felicity to slowly slide down the front of his body until her feet rested on the floor once more.

"So," he began, "do you want to tell Palmer, or should I?"

Felicity stepped back, though she remained within the circle of Oliver's arms. "I don't think we have to tell him anything. I mean what am I supposed to do, walk into his office and say 'Hey boss, remember that hot kiss we shared last night?'" Something that sounded suspiciously like a growl emanated from Oliver's chest in response to Felicity's description. "I mean 'that barely tolerable kiss we shared last night? Well, guess what, never going to happen again. I'm taken. Thanks for trying.'"

"Works for me," Oliver replied. Felicity huffed in exasperation. "If you'd prefer, I could always pay him a visit myself," Oliver continued.

"No, no, no! Absolutely not, Oliver." Felicity did her best to give him a very stern look. It was rather difficult with his hot palms pressed to her back, his thumbs slowly moving back and forth across the fabric of her skin-tight dress. "If I find out the Arrow has paid a late-night visit to Ray Palmer I will be very, very upset. And trust me, I will find out. I will hide GPS trackers in your bow, your quiver, your hood, and even those green leather pants, which by the way, I love. You won't be able to go to the bathroom without me knowing it. Do you understand me mister?" She emphasized her point with a poke to his chest.

"Who said it had to be the Arrow?" he asked. "Oliver Queen wouldn't mind letting Palmer know exactly what would happen if he tried anything with you again." He had a look in his eyes that made it clear exactly how much he'd enjoy having that conversation with Ray.

"Ok, first of all, don't talk about yourself in the third person. It's weird." Oliver smiled as he remembered Digg telling him something similar when they'd started working together. "I mean seriously," Felicity continued, "there's only one of you, and as I already told you I'm interested in your whole package." Oliver's eyebrows rose at Felicity's unintended sexual innuendo. "I mean, not your package, package," Felicity quickly continued as a faint blush spread across her cheeks. "Not that I'm not interested in that package too. I mean, hello, leather pants. I believe I already mentioned my appreciation for those. And you definitely keep yourself in shape. And I can't believe I'm still talking about this. I'm going to stop now." Felicity firmly clamped her lips together, silently counting to ten in her head in an effort to control her embarrassment.

Oliver quietly chuckled as he slowly rubbed Felicity's arms in an attempt to comfort her. He loved the way her mouth ran away from her at times; it was one of the many things he loved about her. "Well I appreciate your appreciation," he replied with a twinkle in his eye.

His teasing tone banished the last remnants of Felicity's blush, and she cleared her throat before continuing. "As I was saying, there's only one of you so let's drop the third person, ok?" she questioned. She took Oliver's agreement for granted and continued on without waiting for a reply. "Next, I know what you saw in my office tonight, but you didn't see everything."

Oliver immediately dropped his arms and turned away. He had no desire to hear Felicity describe exactly what happened between her and Palmer that night. He'd seen more than enough with his own two eyes and the last thing he needed was a detailed description of the event. "Really Felicity, you don't owe me any sort of explanation…" he began.

Felicity placed a gentle hand on his forearm and turned him back around so they were once again face-to-face. "I know you don't want to hear it Oliver, but I think it might be better if I explain exactly what happened." She paused long enough to allow Oliver to nod his head in reluctant agreement. It didn't escape her notice that his eyes were cast down, refusing to meet her own. "So," she began slowly, "Ray had loaned me a necklace to wear to the business dinner this evening…"

"I always do that for my business associates," Oliver cut in.

"Oliver, am I going to need my loud voice?" Felicity asked sharply.

Oliver ducked his head, mostly to hide his smile at Felicity's mention of her loud voice. "I'm sorry, continue."

"Thank you. Anyway, he needed the necklace back. He helped me take it off, I turned around, and we kissed." Oliver winced as the image of Felicity and Ray kissing flashed in his mind.

"Yes, I saw that part," he replied dryly.

"Right. Well what you didn't see was how quickly Ray pulled away, mumbled something about keeping things professional, and practically ran out of my office." She placed her hands on Oliver's cheeks once again, marveling at the fact that she could touch him and not worry that he'd pull away and shut her out. "It was over almost before it began, and it's clear that you must have the absolute worst timing in the world. I mean come on, five seconds either way and you wouldn't have seen anything! What are the chances?"

"Think of it this way," Oliver responded as he slid his arms back around Felicity, "if I hadn't walked in at precisely that moment, and gotten so upset tonight, we wouldn't be here right now. Sounds like pretty good timing to me."

"Good point," Felicity replied, returning his embrace. "And one more thing Oliver. While I was kissing Ray, the only thought running through my mind was, 'Why can't it be Oliver kissing me like this?'"

A huge grin spread across Oliver's face. "That's what I like to hear."

He pulled her in closer and lowered his mouth to hers. The kiss was gentle at first, but the heat between the pair quickly intensified. The kiss went on for some time, and Felicity couldn't seem to stop herself from sliding her hand under the hem of Oliver's shirt in an attempt to feel the bare skin of his back. At her touch, Oliver's muscles stiffened and he quickly pulled back.

The pair stared at each other, breathing heavily, before Oliver finally spoke. "Felicity," he began, before clearing his throat, "I don't want to do this with you."

It was as if someone had thrown a bucket of cold water in her face. She stepped back and gave Oliver a look full of pain and anger. "What?" she asked incredulously. "I thought we talked about this. You promised me you wouldn't change your mind, Oliver. You promised you wouldn't push me away."

Oliver's eyes widened and he quickly grabbed her hands and tried to explain. "Felicity, no! That's not what I meant. I mean I definitely want to be with you. I just meant that I don't want to have sex with you!"

"Excuse me?" Felicity practically yelled.

Oliver pinched the bridge of his nose, making a small sound of frustration. "This is clearly not going well," he muttered. Lifting his eyes to meet Felicity's gaze. "Can we sit down for a minute so I can try to explain?" he pleaded.

"This had better be good Oliver, because telling a girl you don't want to have sex with her really kills the mood," Felicity huffed as she dropped into her office chair.

Oliver wheeled over one of the other chairs and sat directly in front of her, leaning forward to clasp her hands with his own. "Let me start over," he began. "I want to have sex with you. I mean I really want to have sex with you. I just don't want to do it right now."

"That is marginally better, but I'm still not sure I understand."

Oliver sighed. "You know me Felicity. My history with women is…"

"Extensive?" Felicity cut in when he hesitated. "Depressing? Disastrous? Something reminiscent of the Chernobyl disaster?" she asked. "You know, like booooom," Felicity said, accompanying the sound she was making with the appropriate hand gestures to mimic an explosion.

Oliver gave her a small smile. "The last one might be a bit much, but your first few descriptions are pretty accurate. The thing is, I don't want that to happen with you. I think…I think I have a tendency to jump into a physical relationship as fast as possible. I know it sounds weird, but it's my way of keeping people at a distance. Almost as though if I give a woman physical intimacy, I can prevent her from asking for anything more from me." Oliver paused, and Felicity could tell he was struggling to explain thoughts and feelings he'd never really examined before. She gently squeezed his hands to let him know she supported him, no matter what. "But it's different with you. Even when I didn't want to let you in, you managed to get under my skin. You managed to see me, and comfort me, and understand me in ways that no one else ever has. This is too important to me, you are too important to me, and I don't want to rush it," Oliver concluded earnestly.

Felicity took a moment to consider her response. "I understand Oliver, and if that's how you feel then we can take things slow," she replied.

"Are you sure it's not a problem?" he asked tentatively. "I know I've put you through a lot by pushing you away for so long. I don't want to hurt you anymore. And I don't want you to think I'm not interested. Are you sure you can wait?"

"Listen, if I've managed not to jump you after watching you shirtless on that salmon ladder for the last two years, I think I'll be able to control myself," Felicity said with a smile.

"You're the best, Felicity." Oliver pulled her from her chair and into another hug.

"I know, and that's why you love me."

He pulled back to look in her eyes. "One of the many reasons I love you," he replied sincerely.

"And I love you too."

Oliver closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against hers. "I will never get tired of hearing you say that," he whispered.

Felicity placed a quick kiss on his lips before responding. "Glad to hear it, because I'm going to be saying that a lot."

They stood quietly together for a few moments before Felicity pulled away. "It's probably best if I head home," she said quietly while gathering up her phone and keys. She paused for a moment before saying, "You know, you could always stay the night at my apartment. No hanky-panky necessary, I promise," she added hastily.

Oliver smiled at her reassurances. It seemed as though he had smiled more in the last hour than he had in years. "It's probably better if I stay here," he replied.

"Suit yourself," said Felicity, "but my offer still stands. When you're ready, I'd love to share my bed with you." She smiled as he laughed. "Even if it is in a completely platonic sense. I have to admit, the idea of sleeping in your arms is very enticing."

Oliver groaned. "You're killing me here, Felicity."

"I know," she responded, giving him a little wink. "I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Of course."

"Goodnight, Oliver."

"Goodnight, Felicity."

She leaned in close for one last lingering kiss, and then walked up the stairs and out of the Foundry. It took all of Oliver's hard won self-control not to go running after her. Instead, he turned toward the salmon ladder, determined to work off all the energy he wouldn't be using with Felicity that evening. He had a feeling his self-imposed sex moratorium wouldn't be lasting very long. Even he didn't have that much control.

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_The next day_

Diggle and Roy made their way down the steps onto the floor of the Foundry. The pair paused when they caught sight of Oliver and Felicity. Felicity was sitting on the chair in front of her computers while Oliver leaned over her shoulder. His hand rested on her opposite shoulder as they quietly discussed whatever was on the screen in front of them. Digg didn't miss the way Oliver was moving his thumb back and forth, absent-mindedly stroking the back of Felicity's neck.

The two were speaking too quietly for Digg or Roy to hear what was being said, but there was no mistaking the smile Felicity had when she turned her head and gazed up at Oliver's profile. More surprising was the smile on Oliver's face as he turned to meet her gaze. Lately the tension between those two had been thick enough to cut with a knife. This sudden shift had bells ringing in Digg's mind and a smile spreading across his face.

Digg cleared his throat, and the pair at the computer desk quickly moved apart. In response, the smile on Digg's face grew even larger.

"Hey guys, how's it going?" Digg asked with amusement in his voice.

Oliver's only response was a wry smile. As usual, Felicity was more forthcoming. "Great! Everything is great. Oliver and I were just looking over the police reports that were filed today. Trying to see if there's anything you guys need to look into. It's actually looking like a really quiet night. Standard patrol type stuff. Easy-peesy mac-and-cheesy." All three men gave her nearly identical looks of amusement. "And, I'll just go back to my computers now." She swiveled back around and began typing away on her keyboard.

Digg turned back to Oliver and raised his eyebrows. Oliver ignored the look. "Like Felicity said, it's looking like a pretty quiet night. Roy, you suit up to join me on patrol. Digg, why don't you head home to Lyla and Sara? If we need any back up we can always give you a call."

"Sounds good to me," Roy replied quickly, striding over to the case containing his gear.

"So that's it?" Digg asked, crossing his arms over his chest. "Nothing else you two need to share?"

Roy paused, finally seeming to sense the change in the atmosphere. Out of the corner of his eye, Digg could see the blush spreading across Felicity's cheeks.

Oliver glanced at Felicity's profile before turning back to Digg with a huge smile on his face. "Felicity and I are…"

"Whoa, are you two doing it?" Roy interrupted before Oliver could finish. All Digg could do was roll his eyes at the young man's inappropriate question.

Oliver gave Roy a stern look before responding with, "Seeing as how we're not seventeen year-olds in the back of my parents' station wagon, I'm going to go with no, we're not 'doing it.'"

"I never would have pictured your family with a station wagon," Roy said. "Not unless Mercedes Benz makes a station wagon I don't know about." His comments earned him a slap on the arm from Diggle. "Ow," he mumbled, rubbing at the spot Diggle had smacked. "What did I say?"

"Anyway," Oliver continued with another glare at Roy to make sure he wasn't interrupted again, "Felicity and I had a long talk last night and agreed we wanted to…pursue a relationship." He reached out his hand, drawing Felicity out of her chair. He placed an arm around her waist and held her close.

"She finally beat some sense into you, huh?" Diggle responded with a grin on his face.

"Basically," Oliver replied with an answering smile.

"Well it's about damn time." Digg strode forward to shake Oliver's hand before pulling him into a hug and slapping him on the back a few times. Digg glanced over to see Felicity talking to Roy. He spoke quietly to Oliver, "Are you sure about this? You're all in this time?"

Oliver's gaze lingered on Felicity before meeting Digg's eyes. "Absolutely."

"Good," Digg replied, "you deserve to have some happiness in your life. And it's about time you listened to me."

The smile slid off Oliver's face to be replaced with a serious look. "I have to keep her safe, Digg. I can't do this without her."

Digg clapped him on the shoulder. "Don't worry, Oliver. We'll keep her safe together." The pair stood quietly for a moment, staring at the blond who was animatedly talking with Roy. "And by the way," Digg continued, "if you break her heart again, I will hurt you."

Before Oliver could formulate a reply, Felicity and Roy joined the pair. "I was just telling Blondie here how nice it will be not to have you brooding all over the place," Roy told Oliver.

"Very funny," Oliver responded dryly.

"Hey, I'm serious," Roy countered. "You've been in a bad way ever since that explosion in the restaurant."

Oliver looked to Digg for back-up, but the older man just shook his head. "Don't look at me. I agree with the kid."

Oliver compressed his lips but made no reply.

"So…is this gonna make things weird now?" Roy asked. "Are you two going to be making googly eyes at each other all day?"

Felicity and Oliver both responded with an immediate and forceful, "No!"

Digg looked at Roy and said, "Would that really be any different from how they normally act?"

"Good point," Roy responded with a nod.

"Hey, I take offense at that!" Felicity spluttered. "I think I've always conducted myself in a perfectly professional manner around Oliver. I mean ok, so there might have been some staring when he was on the salmon ladder. And maybe I made a comment or two about how good he looks without a shirt on. But come on, have you seen the man? Leather pants, sweaty chest, what's not to like?"

Digg looked at Oliver. The younger man was staring at Felicity with that goofy grin on his face that he always got when she started getting particularly complimentary of him in her rambling. "I don't even know how to respond to that," Digg told Felicity.

"Felicity and I will be fine." Oliver finally cut in. "We're both adults and we both understand what's at stake when I put my hood on to work as the Arrow. We wouldn't do anything to jeopardize that."

"That's right," Felicity chimed in. "We've already agreed that it's better if we don't talk relationship things while we're on the job. That way he can stay focused, and he can make it back here safe." She reached out and gently squeezed Oliver's hand with her own. "That's what's most important, keeping everyone safe."

"Glad to hear it," Roy said. "I don't need to listen to you two being all lovey-dovey over the comms. That would just be weird, and kinda gross."

"Go put your suit on," Oliver told him with exasperation. "I promise not to read Felicity any love poems over the comms while we're on patrol tonight."

"Awww, you'd recite love poetry to me?" Felicity asked sweetly.

"Is that what you want?" Oliver countered with a surprised look on his face.

"Not if you don't want to do it. I mean I'd never ask you to do something you didn't want to do," she replied.

Roy looked to Digg and mouthed the word, "weird," before grabbing his outfit and heading to the bathroom to change.

Digg cleared his throat to get their attentions. When they had both turned back to him he said, "Listen, I'm really happy for you two. I think it's great you're finally moving forward. It's really rare in life that you find that person who understands you so well, who sees exactly who you are but wants you anyway. I'd like to think that's the case for you two, and I wish you nothing but the best. But…"

"But?" Felicity prompted when Digg paused.

"But," he looked them both in the eyes before continuing, "I better not walk in here and find you two having sexy time on the med table. Are we clear?"

Felicity blushed and snorted in a failed attempt to contain her laughter. Oliver just smiled, first at Felicity and then at Digg. "We're clear."


	3. Chapter 3

**Welcome back, everyone! I know I write at a snail's pace, but that's what happens when the real world gets in the way. This is the third and final chapter in this happy little universe, which at this point is so AU it's kind of ridiculous. I kind of went back and forth on whether I should even publish this chapter, but in the end I decided if I'd spent my time writing 4000+ words, I might as well give you guys a chance to read it. I hope you enjoy!**

**As always, I'm grateful for any feedback. Reviews are absolutely wonderful, but I appreciate anyone who takes the time to read my work.**

Felicity's eyes carefully scanned the lines of code scrolling across her screen. _This is so not my job anymore_, she thought to herself. It was bad enough she had back-to-back meetings scheduled for the afternoon. Now, instead of prepping for those meetings, she was stuck using her lunch hour trying to fix all the problems caused by the security update installed by the IT department that morning. Instead of seamlessly upgrading the company's firewall, the software update had managed to crash all the internal servers. All of the specs, reports, and handouts Felicity needed for her many afternoon meetings were currently being held hostage by those dead servers, and she was determined to get them out.

It wouldn't be such a big deal, except one of her meetings was with some very important investors who were interested in the work being done in the Applied Sciences Division. Ray had been hounding her about the meeting all week, emphasizing its influence over her division's budget for the next fiscal year. Felicity was determined to give a great presentation and finally banish all those lingering questions about her ability to head Applied Sciences. There was no way she was letting a routine system update stand in her way, even if that meant personally examining the update's source code. Which was why she was sitting at her desk watching code scroll by instead of having lunch with Oliver as she'd originally planned.

As she thought about the lunch she'd had to cancel, her mind invariably started to wander over the past few days. It had only been about two weeks since Oliver had agreed to give their relationship a chance, but the pair had already found a comfortable routine. She spent her days working at Palmer Technologies and her nights running tech support for her team. She and Oliver often met in the Foundry early to eat dinner together and share some quiet time. Dinners in had been Oliver's suggestion, and Felicity couldn't help but feel he was trying to avoid a repeat of their first date. Not that she was interested in having a restaurant blow up around her again, but she did think he was taking his protectiveness a little too far.

_Baby steps_, she reminded herself. Finally getting Oliver to admit, and act, on his feelings had been a huge step in the right direction. She was willing to take it slow to make sure he didn't try to pull away. _Slow being the operative word_, Felicity thought with a small sigh. She and Oliver still hadn't taken their relationship to the next level, physically speaking. She was more than willing, eager even, but she was also willing to respect Oliver's wishes to take it slow.

Oliver had gotten into the habit of following Felicity home after their nightly activities, just to make sure she made it there safely. Often she would manage to talk him into her apartment for an extended good night. They would end up curled together on her couch, talking shop or just quietly decompressing after a stressful day. Sometimes things turned physical, but they'd refrained from going too far. It was getting harder and harder to pull back, however, and Felicity suspected she wasn't the only one who felt that way. There were times when she'd catch Oliver staring at her in the Foundry, and the heat in his eyes would be enough to take her breath away. She shivered a little just thinking about it. The anticipation was going to kill her, but she couldn't imagine a better way to go.

Felicity gave herself a small shake to clear her head, and turned her attention back to her computer screen. She had to find the problem before her next meeting, otherwise she was going to have to perform a real song-and-dance to protect her department from budget cuts.

It was another twenty minutes before Felicity found the coding error, and she couldn't stop herself from letting out a triumphant "Yes!" accompanied by a small fist pump. _Still the queen of code_, she thought to herself. She quickly fixed the problem on her own and uploaded the patch to the servers herself. _No point in giving the IT department another chance to screw it up_, she thought uncharitably.

After that was done, she quickly retrieved the documents she needed from the server and started them printing. She knew her assistant Gerry would bring the print-outs to her office, so she turned her mind toward writing an e-mail to the team in IT, explaining exactly what the problem had been.

She was doing her best not to point out how the disaster could have easily been prevented through due diligence, not to mention that they never should have been uploading a security patch during business hours anyway, when she heard the footsteps entering her office.

"Just put them on the corner of my desk, and then you can head out for lunch," she instructed Gerry without glancing up from her computer screen.

"Not even a kiss to say thank you?" a voice that definitely wasn't Gerry's asked in amusement.

Felicity's head whipped around. That was unquestionably her boyfriend and not her executive assistant. "Oliver!" she exclaimed a little breathlessly. "What are you doing here? Not that I'm not happy to see you, of course."

"Lunch," he replied simply.

Felicity immediately went into panic mode. She had texted him earlier canceling their lunch plans, hadn't she? She couldn't possibly have pulled one of those stupid moves where you type the text but don't actually send it, could she? She immediately began shuffling papers trying to find her phone. "Didn't I…" she began, but trailed off as the search for her phone continued. _My desk isn't that big_, she thought frantically, _it has to be here somewhere!_

Taking pity on his obviously flustered girlfriend, Oliver cut in, "Don't worry Felicity. I got your text canceling our lunch plans."

Felicity relaxed back in her office chair, trying to figure out what Oliver was doing in her office if he'd gotten her text. Her question must have shown on her face, because Oliver continued. "When I got your text explaining the crashed servers, I had a feeling you'd be working overtime trying to fix the problem. I know your meeting today is important, so I thought you'd probably be skipping lunch all together to make sure everything was perfect." He held up a paper bag that Felicity hadn't noticed in her anxiety over the missing phone.

Felicity couldn't keep the smile off her face at the thought of Oliver delivering lunch to her office. She knew it must be hard for him visiting what used to be his company, his office to be exact. She did her best not to talk too much about work when she was with Oliver. She knew he'd be willing to listen, but there was something weird about discussing the company he was no longer a part of. It just didn't feel right. She hadn't been able to hide her anxiety about the upcoming meeting, however, and Oliver had insisted on knowing what was bothering her. She'd done her best to play it off, but Oliver obviously hadn't been fooled. It warmed her heart to know he'd been listening, and that he knew her well enough to predict she'd be skipping lunch.

Coming out from behind her desk, Felicity placed her hand on Oliver's arm and stood on tip-toe to place a kiss on his cheek. "Thank you, Oliver. I actually just solved the server problem, but I definitely don't have time to run out and get lunch. It's nice of you to think of me. That was very sweet" she told him. Their eyes remained locked as they stood together, enjoying the close proximity. The moment was interrupted, however, when Felicity's stomach grumbled. A faint blush stained her cheeks as she asked, "So, what did you bring me?"

"Well," Oliver began with a smile on his face, "I know Big Belly is your favorite, but I wasn't sure how busy you'd be. Those burgers and fries aren't exactly the tastiest when they've gotten cold."

"Tell me about it. One night in the Foundry I got distracted trying to hack into the A.R.G.U.S. satellite feed and my burger got cold. I tried reheating it in the microwave and all the cheese melted off and the bun got all soggy and…anyway not important," Felicity cut herself off. "Now that we've established what you didn't bring me, are you going to reveal what's in the mysterious bag or will I have to employ my feminine wiles to get the truth out of you?" She sent Oliver her best seductive look to go along with her last sentence. She chose not to be offended when he softly chuckled instead of staggering under a wave of uncontrollable lust. She loved Oliver, and there were very few things that made her happier than seeing him so carefree and light-hearted.

"I am," he paused, glancing up and down her body, "very interested in those feminine wiles you're promising." Once again, Felicity could feel the blush spreading over her cheeks. Oliver stepped close, putting his free arm around her waist and drawing her in. Suddenly the amusement in his face was replaced with a look of hunger that Felicity knew had nothing to do with the contents of that take-out bag. "But I'm not sure this is the best time, or place, for you to be plying me with your charms."

"I'd be willing to give you a rain check," Felicity replied a little breathlessly. "I'm more than happy to make myself available for you."

"Felicity," Oliver groaned as he buried his face in her neck. Felicity's breath caught as he began lightly dragging his lips up the side of her throat before moving on to her lips. She and Oliver had been circling around their attraction for each other for years, and the feelings had only gotten more intense since they'd agreed to pursue a relationship. She was more than ready to take the next step, she was just waiting for Oliver to be ready too. She was seriously contemplating their first time being a quickie on her desk at work, though she wasn't quite sure how that would work out given the fact that it was the middle of the work day and her office consisted largely of windows. She was pretty sure her assistant could see everything they were doing, but she was past the point of caring. Maybe they could move things to the supply closet, though that would involve pulling away from Oliver and walking down the hall, two things she didn't consider herself capable of at this point. At least it didn't have windows though.

She was vaguely aware that he had dropped the takeout bag on her desk. His now free hand was buried in her hair, tilting her head to give him better access to her lips. She gripped his shoulders hard before moving one hand to his chest and the other down his back. He tightened the arm around her waist, pulling her flush against him. An involuntary moan escaped Felicity's lips at the feel of Oliver's hard body pressed against hers. He tightened his arm further, before slowing easing back so he could look into her eyes.

"Oliver," his name came out on a sigh as Felicity fought to catch her breath.

"I know, I know," he groaned. "This isn't the time or the place," he replied quietly.

A small chuckle escaped Felicity's lips. "Trust me, I wasn't complaining. If I didn't have this meeting to get to, we'd be testing out the lock on the supply closet right about now."

Oliver smiled in response, meeting Felicity's gaze. "You deserve better than a quickie in the supply closet."

She reached up to gently rub her fuchsia lipstick off his lips. "The location doesn't matter if I'm with you. Though I wouldn't mind if it lasted a little longer than the typical quickie." Felicity paused a moment in thought before continuing, "Of course I've seen you work out, so I'm pretty sure stamina isn't going to be a problem. I bet you could go all night."

Oliver groaned once again. Felicity was going to be the death of him, in the best possible way. "If you don't stop talking like that, I'm not going to last another five minutes."

Felicity glanced down, taking in Oliver's obvious arousal. Her eyes widened. "Got it. Wow, ok. That's hot. I mean, yeah, I'm just going to…" She trailed off as she pointed over her shoulder to the executive bathroom. "You know, freshen up."

Oliver shamelessly watched her as she walked into the restroom. He couldn't seem to turn away until she'd closed the door firmly behind her, which she did after casting him one last flirty look over her shoulder. He gave himself a moment to indulge in the fantasy of pushing everything off of Felicity's desk and finishing what they started, before firmly turning his mind to the least sexy things he could think of. He wanted to be able to walk out of the office without embarrassing himself in front of Felicity's assistant, though he was pretty sure they'd already given Gerry a show.

"Felicity, I just heard about the server, but I think we can…" Oliver stiffened at the sound of Ray Palmer's voice. Ray trailed off when he realized Oliver was in the room, and Felicity was nowhere to be found. He looked blankly at Oliver for a moment, before peering around Felicity's office as though he expected her to pop out from behind the desk and yell surprise.

Oliver finally took pity on the man. He gestured toward the bathroom saying, "She just stepped out to freshen up."

Ray nodded. "Got it. So…" he looked Oliver up and down, "what brings you by Palmer Technologies? You miss the place that much?"

Refusing to rise to the bait, Oliver replied, "I was just bringing Felicity some lunch." He gestured to the long forgotten take out bag on her desk.

"Well, it was certainly nice of you to take time out of your busy schedule to bring Felicity lunch."

Oliver smirked a little at Ray's dig, and couldn't resist responding. "It seemed like the right thing to do since she had to cancel our lunch date." He might have placed a little more emphasis on the last word than was strictly necessary, but who could blame him. Ray was doing his best to push Oliver's buttons, so he might as well push back. "I mean, she had to spend her lunch hour fixing problems at your company, so someone has to look out for her best interests."

"Yeah, that's why I'm here actually," Ray cut in. "I've been in meetings all morning, but I thought Felicity and I could work together to try and get the server problems figured out." Ray placed his hands in his suit pockets and took a step toward Oliver. "Despite being head of the company, I have a pretty strong background in computer science. I think Felicity and I could easily figure out the problem…together of course."

"Felicity already fixed the problem," Oliver took great pride in informing Ray. "Looks like she doesn't need your help after all."

The pair stood quietly for a moment, silently acknowledging the animosity they both felt. That was how Felicity found them, engaged in a silent stare down.

"Uh, hey guys." She looked back and forth between the two men. "What's going on?"

"Nothing," Oliver replied.

"Just catching up," Ray answered at the same time.

"Right." Knowing both men, Felicity wasn't exactly convinced, but she didn't have time to worry about it. She had to grab her paperwork from Gerry and head to the conference room. She walked over to her desk and picked up her tablet and phone. Shifting the contents of her desk once again, she also found the folder of notes she'd made for her presentation. Once again she glanced between the two men. _I do not have time to solve this problem right now_, she thought to herself. _They're big boys, they can figure it out on their own_.

"Well I have a meeting to get to so I'll leave you both to it." She started to make her way towards the door. "Ray, I'll see you in the investors meeting later. Oliver, I'll see you at the normal time tonight, right?"

Oliver glanced at Ray before answering. Felicity could tell by the look on his face that he wanted to make a comment about their dinner plans that would needle Ray. "Sure, see you tonight," he answered.

She smiled at the obvious restraint he was showing for her benefit. It meant a lot to her that Oliver would put her own desire to keep things professional in front of her boss before his desire to mark his territory. She wasn't about to hide her relationship though. She walked up to Oliver and placed her hand on his chest. She stood on tiptoe and placed a light kiss on his lips. "I love you."

He smiled and placed his hand over hers against his chest. He gave it a slight squeeze before replying. "I love you too."

Felicity moved towards the office door but Oliver spoke up before she reached it. "Felicity?"

"Yeah?" she asked, turning back with a questioning look.

Oliver held up the forgotten takeout bag. "Don't forget your lunch."

She smiled. "What did you bring me?"

The corners of Oliver's mouth turned up in an answering grin. "A grilled chicken salad, with garlic bread and dressing on the side. No reheating required, even if you do get distracted." Felicity blushed at the thought of the very pleasurable distraction she and Oliver had been engaged in just a few moments ago.

Ray looked between the pair. He could tell there was a hidden meaning behind Oliver's words, but for the life of him he couldn't begin to guess what it was. He could easily see the connection the two shared, however, and it occurred to him that the kiss he'd shared with Felicity a few weeks ago had been a mistake for multiple reasons.

Felicity took the bag and made her way to the office door once more. She gave Oliver one last glance before exiting the office and heading to her assistant's desk to pick up her printouts.

The men watched her silently, until she turned down the hallway and walked out of sight.

"So…" Ray began after a moment had passed, "you and Felicity are…together?"

"That's right," Oliver answered, trying unsuccessfully to keep the grin off his face.

"So…how long has that been going on?" Ray asked in a voice clearly meant to convey his lack of interest in the answer. It failed miserably.

"A couple of weeks," Oliver answered. "Though the attraction has been there," he paused, trying to find the right words, "forever."

Ray nodded his head thoughtfully before asking his next question. "It took you that long to convince her?"

A small, sad smile grew on Oliver's face. He looked off into the distance for a moment before answering. "No. It took her that long to convince me."

Ray looked surprised by that admission. "What are you blind, or just stupid?" he asked incredulously.

Oliver shook his head, bringing himself back to the present and back to the conversation at hand. He narrowed his eyes at Palmer, not appreciating the insult. "I was her boss," Oliver replied gruffly. "Not everyone is willing to take advantage of their employees, despite the feelings involved." It wasn't anywhere near the truth of the situation, but Oliver wasn't about to go into details with Palmer.

Ray stiffened, quickly realizing that Oliver was well aware of the kiss he'd shared with Felicity. He wasn't comfortable with the kiss himself, so he could hardly blame Oliver for calling him on it. "Right," he answered, clearing his throat. "Got it."

"I hope you do," Oliver replied, looking straight into Ray's eyes. Ray gave a slight nod, and Oliver took that as his cue to go. "See you around, Palmer." Oliver slowly made his way to the elevator, plans for his evening with Felicity already forming in his mind.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_Later that evening_

Felicity made her way into the Foundry, finding Oliver pacing impatiently in front of her computer desk. "What's wrong?" she asked hurriedly. "Did something happen to Roy or Diggle?"

Oliver stopped his pacing to turn toward Felicity. "What? No, why would you think that?" Oliver asked with a confused look.

"You were doing that impatient, pacing back and forth thing that you always do when you're waiting for information, usually when someone's life is at stake," Felicity explained quickly. "So who's in trouble?"

Oliver smiled. "No one's in trouble, at least not that I know of. And while I was waiting for information, I'm pretty sure no one's life is at stake." He stepped up to Felicity and gently took her hands. "How was your meeting?"

"Oh," Felicity replied as her eyes widened. "That's what had you doing the broody pacing routine? You were worried about my meeting? Oliver, that's so sweet!" She leaned in for a kiss, which Oliver impatiently returned.

"Yes, yes, very sweet. But how was your meeting?" he asked impatiently.

Felicity couldn't contain her grin. "It was fantastic! I totally kicked ass and impressed all the investors with my superior intelligence, fabulous ideas, and general awesomeness."

Oliver wrapped his arms around her waist and spun her around happily. "That's great, Felicity!" he said excitedly. "I knew you'd do a great job." He placed her feet back on the ground and a hard kiss on her lips. "I'm so proud of you."

"Thank you, Oliver," Felicity replied sincerely. "That means a lot to me."

"We should celebrate. How about Carter's for dinner?"

"I love Carter's," Felicity responded quickly. "But wait, do they do takeout?"

"I don't know," Oliver answered, "but it doesn't matter. I was thinking we could go out to dinner. You know, if you're up for it."

Once again, Felicity's eyes widened. "Really, you want to go out to dinner? Like, in a restaurant?"

Oliver sighed, taking her hands once again. "You have been incredibly patient with me, Felicity, but I do realize we can't spend our lives hidden away. And if we're going to go out, it might as well be to celebrate something as amazing as your presentation to the investors."

"I'd love to go out to dinner with you Oliver." Felicity smiled as she placed her arms around Oliver's neck. "I can't imagine a better way to end my day than with a nice, quiet dinner with you."

"Well…" Oliver began with a heated look, "I was actually thinking of a different way to end our evening."

"What did you…" Felicity trailed off as Oliver raised his brows. "Oh. OH! Uh, ok. Really? That? I mean, not that I'm not interested in that, because I am definitely interested in that. But you said, I mean, I don't want you to feel rushed. Or obligated. Not that I think you do or anything, but…"

Oliver finally silenced her with a kiss. It started as a simple means to stop her fumbling words, but quickly escalated into something more. When they finally separated they were both breathing heavily. Oliver placed his hands on either side of her face. "I'm ready, Felicity. I want to take this step with you."

"Well, if you're sure," she replied.

"I've never been more sure," Oliver answered decisively.

"Well," Felicity began, lightly running her hands down his chest, "I'm not really dressed for Carter's. Maybe we should head to my place first. So that I can slip into something more…appropriate." She grinned at him.

Oliver gave her a mock serious look. "We are going out to eat in a restaurant, Felicity. Don't think you can distract me with those feminine wiles we were talking about earlier."

"Of course," Felicity agreed, grabbing Oliver's hand and practically dragging him toward the stairs and the exit. "I completely agree."

Oliver grinned as he followed along behind her. "I'm serious, Felicity. I am determined to sit down and eat a meal with you in public."

"I promise," Felicity assured him, "I won't distract you…for too long."

The sound of Oliver's laughter echoed through the Foundry as the door slammed behind the pair.

In the end, they each got what they wanted. Felicity succeeded in distracting Oliver, but he still managed to take her to a restaurant…for breakfast.

**Thank again for reading. Reviews are very much appreciated!**


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